New Additions to Leagues Check Up (ECNL & GA)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A little retrospective from someone that witnessed SY the first time and DA and now the MLS GA ECNL back and forths online.

1. When we initially switched to BY in 2017/18 people didnt like it. But it was easier to do because younger players were being moved up to older teams. In theory this should have made USM/WNTs stronger because at least for a couple of years there would be oldest players around Aug and Jan. I never noticed a difference + the same DOCs were selling the same Talent ID invites out of their trunk.

2. When DA announced they were doing womens teams girls ECNL instantly got dumped into the trash. Believe it or not there was a time around 2018ish when every big club was changing from ECNL to DA. ECNL was literally begging top girls clubs to not join DA. Personally I think this is why when DA blow up Chisrian chose to get vengence back on a few clubs not letting them back into ECNL. Which was a poor business decision. He could have had it all but chose to be petty.

3. MLS both 1 and 2 are what boys want to be involved with. You can see it in littles tournaments. MLS clubs have 3-4 boys teams and ECNL clubs have 1 maybe 2.

4. And the final riveting statement that you’ve all been waiting for.... For girls GA and ECNL are pretty much the same thing. If you're not on a club that ranks in the top 30 in the nation you're going to be emailing college coaches just like everyone else trying to get their attention. Also something nobody tells you about is as girls get older they start to get ACL injuries. Maybe its better to not play in the super league that has gladiator games every weekend. What I mean is some leagues are stacked with top 30 clubs. This means every weekend your kid will need to go all out risking injury. Yes this will likely develop a "tougher" player. But what does it matter if they cant play Sophmore to Junior year because they tore their ACL? Sometimes less is more.

One more final statement. Believe it or not but the ECNL hats are less annoying this spring than they've been in the past.

I can't believe you basically just said that ECNL is so much tougher, you'll probably get hurt playing it. Yes, that's what top level coaches are actually looking for to prepare them for the college game. How do you step into the college environment completely unprepared if you're playing in a "lower" league?

I didnt say that ECNL was tougher. You added that. I said that some leagues (regional leagues in ecnl terms) have more top 30 clubs than others. This means players will need to battle at a high level more often during league games. This becomes a serious issue as players get older. Also once you've have one ACL surgery you're much more likely to tear your ACL again. College coahes know this + it can play into the recruitment process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A little retrospective from someone that witnessed SY the first time and DA and now the MLS GA ECNL back and forths online.

1. When we initially switched to BY in 2017/18 people didnt like it. But it was easier to do because younger players were being moved up to older teams. In theory this should have made USM/WNTs stronger because at least for a couple of years there would be oldest players around Aug and Jan. I never noticed a difference + the same DOCs were selling the same Talent ID invites out of their trunk.

2. When DA announced they were doing womens teams girls ECNL instantly got dumped into the trash. Believe it or not there was a time around 2018ish when every big club was changing from ECNL to DA. ECNL was literally begging top girls clubs to not join DA. Personally I think this is why when DA blow up Chisrian chose to get vengence back on a few clubs not letting them back into ECNL. Which was a poor business decision. He could have had it all but chose to be petty.

3. MLS both 1 and 2 are what boys want to be involved with. You can see it in littles tournaments. MLS clubs have 3-4 boys teams and ECNL clubs have 1 maybe 2.

4. And the final riveting statement that you’ve all been waiting for.... For girls GA and ECNL are pretty much the same thing. If you're not on a club that ranks in the top 30 in the nation you're going to be emailing college coaches just like everyone else trying to get their attention. Also something nobody tells you about is as girls get older they start to get ACL injuries. Maybe its better to not play in the super league that has gladiator games every weekend. What I mean is some leagues are stacked with top 30 clubs. This means every weekend your kid will need to go all out risking injury. Yes this will likely develop a "tougher" player. But what does it matter if they cant play Sophmore to Junior year because they tore their ACL? Sometimes less is more.

One more final statement. Believe it or not but the ECNL hats are less annoying this spring than they've been in the past.

I can't believe you basically just said that ECNL is so much tougher, you'll probably get hurt playing it. Yes, that's what top level coaches are actually looking for to prepare them for the college game. How do you step into the college environment completely unprepared if you're playing in a "lower" league?

You are missing the point.

Top 20 ECNL
Top 10 GA

if you aren’t at those clubs, you have a harder time getting into college

wrong. probably top 75 ranked get plenty of looks. maybe not as many P4 players but plenty of good players who go to college

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A little retrospective from someone that witnessed SY the first time and DA and now the MLS GA ECNL back and forths online.

1. When we initially switched to BY in 2017/18 people didnt like it. But it was easier to do because younger players were being moved up to older teams. In theory this should have made USM/WNTs stronger because at least for a couple of years there would be oldest players around Aug and Jan. I never noticed a difference + the same DOCs were selling the same Talent ID invites out of their trunk.

2. When DA announced they were doing womens teams girls ECNL instantly got dumped into the trash. Believe it or not there was a time around 2018ish when every big club was changing from ECNL to DA. ECNL was literally begging top girls clubs to not join DA. Personally I think this is why when DA blow up Chisrian chose to get vengence back on a few clubs not letting them back into ECNL. Which was a poor business decision. He could have had it all but chose to be petty.

3. MLS both 1 and 2 are what boys want to be involved with. You can see it in littles tournaments. MLS clubs have 3-4 boys teams and ECNL clubs have 1 maybe 2.

4. And the final riveting statement that you’ve all been waiting for.... For girls GA and ECNL are pretty much the same thing. If you're not on a club that ranks in the top 30 in the nation you're going to be emailing college coaches just like everyone else trying to get their attention. Also something nobody tells you about is as girls get older they start to get ACL injuries. Maybe its better to not play in the super league that has gladiator games every weekend. What I mean is some leagues are stacked with top 30 clubs. This means every weekend your kid will need to go all out risking injury. Yes this will likely develop a "tougher" player. But what does it matter if they cant play Sophmore to Junior year because they tore their ACL? Sometimes less is more.

One more final statement. Believe it or not but the ECNL hats are less annoying this spring than they've been in the past.

I can't believe you basically just said that ECNL is so much tougher, you'll probably get hurt playing it. Yes, that's what top level coaches are actually looking for to prepare them for the college game. How do you step into the college environment completely unprepared if you're playing in a "lower" league?

I didnt say that ECNL was tougher. You added that. I said that some leagues (regional leagues in ecnl terms) have more top 30 clubs than others. This means players will need to battle at a high level more often during league games. This becomes a serious issue as players get older. Also once you've have one ACL surgery you're much more likely to tear your ACL again. College coahes know this + it can play into the recruitment process.

ok - get you, but you can also just tear your acl stepping over a curb the wrong way. If you're constantly worried about injuries, they're bound to happen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A little retrospective from someone that witnessed SY the first time and DA and now the MLS GA ECNL back and forths online.

1. When we initially switched to BY in 2017/18 people didnt like it. But it was easier to do because younger players were being moved up to older teams. In theory this should have made USM/WNTs stronger because at least for a couple of years there would be oldest players around Aug and Jan. I never noticed a difference + the same DOCs were selling the same Talent ID invites out of their trunk.

2. When DA announced they were doing womens teams girls ECNL instantly got dumped into the trash. Believe it or not there was a time around 2018ish when every big club was changing from ECNL to DA. ECNL was literally begging top girls clubs to not join DA. Personally I think this is why when DA blow up Chisrian chose to get vengence back on a few clubs not letting them back into ECNL. Which was a poor business decision. He could have had it all but chose to be petty.

3. MLS both 1 and 2 are what boys want to be involved with. You can see it in littles tournaments. MLS clubs have 3-4 boys teams and ECNL clubs have 1 maybe 2.

4. And the final riveting statement that you’ve all been waiting for.... For girls GA and ECNL are pretty much the same thing. If you're not on a club that ranks in the top 30 in the nation you're going to be emailing college coaches just like everyone else trying to get their attention. Also something nobody tells you about is as girls get older they start to get ACL injuries. Maybe its better to not play in the super league that has gladiator games every weekend. What I mean is some leagues are stacked with top 30 clubs. This means every weekend your kid will need to go all out risking injury. Yes this will likely develop a "tougher" player. But what does it matter if they cant play Sophmore to Junior year because they tore their ACL? Sometimes less is more.

One more final statement. Believe it or not but the ECNL hats are less annoying this spring than they've been in the past.

I can't believe you basically just said that ECNL is so much tougher, you'll probably get hurt playing it. Yes, that's what top level coaches are actually looking for to prepare them for the college game. How do you step into the college environment completely unprepared if you're playing in a "lower" league?

I didnt say that ECNL was tougher. You added that. I said that some leagues (regional leagues in ecnl terms) have more top 30 clubs than others. This means players will need to battle at a high level more often during league games. This becomes a serious issue as players get older. Also once you've have one ACL surgery you're much more likely to tear your ACL again. College coahes know this + it can play into the recruitment process.

ok - get you, but you can also just tear your acl stepping over a curb the wrong way. If you're constantly worried about injuries, they're bound to happen.

My kid plays on a top 30 team and theres been 3 ACL injuries in the last 2 years. Only one player has been able to get back to their preACL tear form.

I'm sure most top teams are similar. I'm relaying because its not something you hear about a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A little retrospective from someone that witnessed SY the first time and DA and now the MLS GA ECNL back and forths online.

1. When we initially switched to BY in 2017/18 people didnt like it. But it was easier to do because younger players were being moved up to older teams. In theory this should have made USM/WNTs stronger because at least for a couple of years there would be oldest players around Aug and Jan. I never noticed a difference + the same DOCs were selling the same Talent ID invites out of their trunk.

2. When DA announced they were doing womens teams girls ECNL instantly got dumped into the trash. Believe it or not there was a time around 2018ish when every big club was changing from ECNL to DA. ECNL was literally begging top girls clubs to not join DA. Personally I think this is why when DA blow up Chisrian chose to get vengence back on a few clubs not letting them back into ECNL. Which was a poor business decision. He could have had it all but chose to be petty.

3. MLS both 1 and 2 are what boys want to be involved with. You can see it in littles tournaments. MLS clubs have 3-4 boys teams and ECNL clubs have 1 maybe 2.

4. And the final riveting statement that you’ve all been waiting for.... For girls GA and ECNL are pretty much the same thing. If you're not on a club that ranks in the top 30 in the nation you're going to be emailing college coaches just like everyone else trying to get their attention. Also something nobody tells you about is as girls get older they start to get ACL injuries. Maybe its better to not play in the super league that has gladiator games every weekend. What I mean is some leagues are stacked with top 30 clubs. This means every weekend your kid will need to go all out risking injury. Yes this will likely develop a "tougher" player. But what does it matter if they cant play Sophmore to Junior year because they tore their ACL? Sometimes less is more.

One more final statement. Believe it or not but the ECNL hats are less annoying this spring than they've been in the past.

I can't believe you basically just said that ECNL is so much tougher, you'll probably get hurt playing it. Yes, that's what top level coaches are actually looking for to prepare them for the college game. How do you step into the college environment completely unprepared if you're playing in a "lower" league?

You are missing the point.

Top 20 ECNL
Top 10 GA

if you aren’t at those clubs, you have a harder time getting into college

wrong. probably top 75 ranked get plenty of looks. maybe not as many P4 players but plenty of good players who go to college

Go look at

Solar, HB Koge, So cal Blues, Legends FC, Penn Fusinon, Sting, SLSG, PDA, Nationals, MVLA and tell me what % of college commitments they have compared to all of ECNL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A little retrospective from someone that witnessed SY the first time and DA and now the MLS GA ECNL back and forths online.

1. When we initially switched to BY in 2017/18 people didnt like it. But it was easier to do because younger players were being moved up to older teams. In theory this should have made USM/WNTs stronger because at least for a couple of years there would be oldest players around Aug and Jan. I never noticed a difference + the same DOCs were selling the same Talent ID invites out of their trunk.

2. When DA announced they were doing womens teams girls ECNL instantly got dumped into the trash. Believe it or not there was a time around 2018ish when every big club was changing from ECNL to DA. ECNL was literally begging top girls clubs to not join DA. Personally I think this is why when DA blow up Chisrian chose to get vengence back on a few clubs not letting them back into ECNL. Which was a poor business decision. He could have had it all but chose to be petty.

3. MLS both 1 and 2 are what boys want to be involved with. You can see it in littles tournaments. MLS clubs have 3-4 boys teams and ECNL clubs have 1 maybe 2.

4. And the final riveting statement that you’ve all been waiting for.... For girls GA and ECNL are pretty much the same thing. If you're not on a club that ranks in the top 30 in the nation you're going to be emailing college coaches just like everyone else trying to get their attention. Also something nobody tells you about is as girls get older they start to get ACL injuries. Maybe its better to not play in the super league that has gladiator games every weekend. What I mean is some leagues are stacked with top 30 clubs. This means every weekend your kid will need to go all out risking injury. Yes this will likely develop a "tougher" player. But what does it matter if they cant play Sophmore to Junior year because they tore their ACL? Sometimes less is more.

One more final statement. Believe it or not but the ECNL hats are less annoying this spring than they've been in the past.

I can't believe you basically just said that ECNL is so much tougher, you'll probably get hurt playing it. Yes, that's what top level coaches are actually looking for to prepare them for the college game. How do you step into the college environment completely unprepared if you're playing in a "lower" league?

I didnt say that ECNL was tougher. You added that. I said that some leagues (regional leagues in ecnl terms) have more top 30 clubs than others. This means players will need to battle at a high level more often during league games. This becomes a serious issue as players get older. Also once you've have one ACL surgery you're much more likely to tear your ACL again. College coahes know this + it can play into the recruitment process.

ok - get you, but you can also just tear your acl stepping over a curb the wrong way. If you're constantly worried about injuries, they're bound to happen.

My kid plays on a top 30 team and theres been 3 ACL injuries in the last 2 years. Only one player has been able to get back to their preACL tear form.

I'm sure most top teams are similar. I'm relaying because it’s not something you hear about a lot.

Geez, that sounds awful. I assume girls? Do you see any of this as preventable (ie kids were too specialized, improper shoes, lack of agility and strength training) or is this just the world we live in? I am terrified for my DD to tear her ACL, but other than trying to build a well rounded athlete, I am not sure what other options I have assuming she stays in the sport and wants to play at her highest level possible.

[Anonymous]

There is literally a stretching protocol clubs and coaches can do before each session that hugely minimizes ACL tears. They just...don't do it.

[Anonymous]

FIFA 11+, PEP - these programs have shown significant impact on preventing ACL tears in female athletes. All clubs should be doing them. The kids need balanced muscles, strong core, mobility, etc. It's scary how common this is and now there's tons of research on how to prevent it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A little retrospective from someone that witnessed SY the first time and DA and now the MLS GA ECNL back and forths online.

1. When we initially switched to BY in 2017/18 people didnt like it. But it was easier to do because younger players were being moved up to older teams. In theory this should have made USM/WNTs stronger because at least for a couple of years there would be oldest players around Aug and Jan. I never noticed a difference + the same DOCs were selling the same Talent ID invites out of their trunk.

2. When DA announced they were doing womens teams girls ECNL instantly got dumped into the trash. Believe it or not there was a time around 2018ish when every big club was changing from ECNL to DA. ECNL was literally begging top girls clubs to not join DA. Personally I think this is why when DA blow up Chisrian chose to get vengence back on a few clubs not letting them back into ECNL. Which was a poor business decision. He could have had it all but chose to be petty.

3. MLS both 1 and 2 are what boys want to be involved with. You can see it in littles tournaments. MLS clubs have 3-4 boys teams and ECNL clubs have 1 maybe 2.

4. And the final riveting statement that you’ve all been waiting for.... For girls GA and ECNL are pretty much the same thing. If you're not on a club that ranks in the top 30 in the nation you're going to be emailing college coaches just like everyone else trying to get their attention. Also something nobody tells you about is as girls get older they start to get ACL injuries. Maybe its better to not play in the super league that has gladiator games every weekend. What I mean is some leagues are stacked with top 30 clubs. This means every weekend your kid will need to go all out risking injury. Yes this will likely develop a "tougher" player. But what does it matter if they cant play Sophmore to Junior year because they tore their ACL? Sometimes less is more.

One more final statement. Believe it or not but the ECNL hats are less annoying this spring than they've been in the past.

I can't believe you basically just said that ECNL is so much tougher, you'll probably get hurt playing it. Yes, that's what top level coaches are actually looking for to prepare them for the college game. How do you step into the college environment completely unprepared if you're playing in a "lower" league?

I didnt say that ECNL was tougher. You added that. I said that some leagues (regional leagues in ecnl terms) have more top 30 clubs than others. This means players will need to battle at a high level more often during league games. This becomes a serious issue as players get older. Also once you've have one ACL surgery you're much more likely to tear your ACL again. College coahes know this + it can play into the recruitment process.

ok - get you, but you can also just tear your acl stepping over a curb the wrong way. If you're constantly worried about injuries, they're bound to happen.

My kid plays on a top 30 team and theres been 3 ACL injuries in the last 2 years. Only one player has been able to get back to their preACL tear form.

I'm sure most top teams are similar. I'm relaying because it’s not something you hear about a lot.

Geez, that sounds awful. I assume girls? Do you see any of this as preventable (ie kids were too specialized, improper shoes, lack of agility and strength training) or is this just the world we live in? I am terrified for my DD to tear her ACL, but other than trying to build a well rounded athlete, I am not sure what other options I have assuming she stays in the sport and wants to play at her highest level possible.

All seemed like they were preventable. Just dont play soccer and it probably wouldnt have happened.

Whats difficult to watch is when a player is working their butt off to the point where her mind outpaces her body. Whats even worse is that often you know thats shes doing it to impress her parents who pester them about getting better every drive home from games and practices.

Whats even more difficult to watch is when they finally get back into the mix you can see that they're six months to a year behind everyone else. Also they're scared to go all in like they used to because they no longer trust their knees. It takes a long time to get the trust back if ever.

See what I mean? Sometimes being on a superteam isnt the best play. As long as the club is highly ranked and you still play top teams evey now and then college coaches will find you. Does it make sense in this situation to play against teams that are just looking to hurt you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Louisiana Elite just announced they are leaving MLSNext and GA at the end of the season to join ECNL-RL.

This announcement doesn’t exactly read like they’re excited about it. I don’t think it was their choice, but they’re trying to make the most of it. This is mot likely why HTX was given a second team since they’re in the same conference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Louisiana Elite just announced they are leaving MLSNext and GA at the end of the season to join ECNL-RL.

This announcement doesn’t exactly read like they’re excited about it. I don’t think it was their choice, but they’re trying to make the most of it. This is mot likely why HTX was given a second team since they’re in the same conference.

The comments on there, or lack of…speaks volumes. That’s terrible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A little retrospective from someone that witnessed SY the first time and DA and now the MLS GA ECNL back and forths online.

1. When we initially switched to BY in 2017/18 people didnt like it. But it was easier to do because younger players were being moved up to older teams. In theory this should have made USM/WNTs stronger because at least for a couple of years there would be oldest players around Aug and Jan. I never noticed a difference + the same DOCs were selling the same Talent ID invites out of their trunk.

2. When DA announced they were doing womens teams girls ECNL instantly got dumped into the trash. Believe it or not there was a time around 2018ish when every big club was changing from ECNL to DA. ECNL was literally begging top girls clubs to not join DA. Personally I think this is why when DA blow up Chisrian chose to get vengence back on a few clubs not letting them back into ECNL. Which was a poor business decision. He could have had it all but chose to be petty.

3. MLS both 1 and 2 are what boys want to be involved with. You can see it in littles tournaments. MLS clubs have 3-4 boys teams and ECNL clubs have 1 maybe 2.

4. And the final riveting statement that you’ve all been waiting for.... For girls GA and ECNL are pretty much the same thing. If you're not on a club that ranks in the top 30 in the nation you're going to be emailing college coaches just like everyone else trying to get their attention. Also something nobody tells you about is as girls get older they start to get ACL injuries. Maybe its better to not play in the super league that has gladiator games every weekend. What I mean is some leagues are stacked with top 30 clubs. This means every weekend your kid will need to go all out risking injury. Yes this will likely develop a "tougher" player. But what does it matter if they cant play Sophmore to Junior year because they tore their ACL? Sometimes less is more.

One more final statement. Believe it or not but the ECNL hats are less annoying this spring than they've been in the past.

I can't believe you basically just said that ECNL is so much tougher, you'll probably get hurt playing it. Yes, that's what top level coaches are actually looking for to prepare them for the college game. How do you step into the college environment completely unprepared if you're playing in a "lower" league?

I didnt say that ECNL was tougher. You added that. I said that some leagues (regional leagues in ecnl terms) have more top 30 clubs than others. This means players will need to battle at a high level more often during league games. This becomes a serious issue as players get older. Also once you've have one ACL surgery you're much more likely to tear your ACL again. College coahes know this + it can play into the recruitment process.

ok - get you, but you can also just tear your acl stepping over a curb the wrong way. If you're constantly worried about injuries, they're bound to happen.

My kid plays on a top 30 team and theres been 3 ACL injuries in the last 2 years. Only one player has been able to get back to their preACL tear form.

I'm sure most top teams are similar. I'm relaying because its not something you hear about a lot.

we must be in different circles because I hear about it all the time. 2 local kids on the "rival" team tore there acls at U13. I'm very aware and it's a major problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:FIFA 11+, PEP - these programs have shown significant impact on preventing ACL tears in female athletes. All clubs should be doing them. The kids need balanced muscles, strong core, mobility, etc. It's scary how common this is and now there's tons of research on how to prevent it.

I watched the FIFA 11 instructional video and almost thought it was a joke. I get that there is a lot more science beyond my knowledge, but this cant be the solution. I havent seen it, so if you have it, can you pass it along —> correlation between FIFA 11 and ACL decreasing, especially with females. While I have no doubt that it helps, why wouldn’t it, I struggle to believe there is a strong correlation. Again, this is feel vs science so I am all for being proven wrong. It feels like it is a multifaceted solution vs just getting better at opening and closing the gate but please prove me wrong with data and peer reviewed scientific articles.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is literally a stretching protocol clubs and coaches can do before each session that hugely minimizes ACL tears. They just...don't do it.

Our club has a very strict activation/warm up protocol and all the girls follow it, but unfortunately, young girls are still impacted heavily.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FIFA 11+, PEP - these programs have shown significant impact on preventing ACL tears in female athletes. All clubs should be doing them. The kids need balanced muscles, strong core, mobility, etc. It's scary how common this is and now there's tons of research on how to prevent it.

I watched the FIFA 11 instructional video and almost thought it was a joke. I get that there is a lot more science beyond my knowledge, but this cant be the solution. I havent seen it, so if you have it, can you pass it along —> correlation between FIFA 11 and ACL decreasing, especially with females. While I have no doubt that it helps, why wouldn’t it, I struggle to believe there is a strong correlation. Again, this is feel vs science so I am all for being proven wrong. It feels like it is a multifaceted solution vs just getting better at opening and closing the gate but please prove me wrong with data and peer reviewed scientific articles.

I don't think we need to teach you to use google but you could try things like FIFA 11+, ACL, NIH to faciliate your search for real studies and data. It's there if you look.